What would the world look like without Art?

Welcome to the next blog of the ‘What would the world look like without…’ series. You can have a read of last week’s blog here, which focused on a world without music.

This week, I’ll be looking at what the Arts have done in our world so far, the things we would have missed had the Arts not existed.

Any form of art is a form of power; it has impact, it can affect change – it can not only move us, it makes us move – Ossie Davis

Many people think of the Arts as something that you have a look at, something you post on social media or something that belongs in an exhibition. Many people don’t realise the extent of the impact that the Arts have had in our world and society, and continue to have today.

So let’s have a look at some Arts movements that changed the world (yes, it sounds dramatic but the Arts have started some major movements in the past).

Even today, buildings are designed with heavy influence from the Roman period. For example, if we look at the White House in the USA, the building was designed with heavy influence from a Roman architect, Vitruvius.

Example 2 – Dadaism

Dadaism was an Arts movement that began around the time of WW1, when a new form of Art emerged in protest to the Great War, specifically the nationalism and far-right politics that became prominent over Europe and later the USA. Artists of the DADA movement protested by creating non sensical and non traditional art and other art forms such as cubism emerged from this movement. Some Dadaist magazines were banned, and some artists faced imprisonment due to the insulting nature of the work towards the military, but it paved the way for a change in public perspective to artworks that challenge the status quo.

Example 3 – Black Arts movement

We’ve all heard of, or learnt about the civil rights movement in the USA, but did you know that along with the sit ins, the bus boycotts and marches, an Art movement emerged to tackle the inequality. The Black Arts Movement stemmed from the Harlem Renaissance. New cultural institutions were created, with much focus placed on black autonomy. The Black Arts Movement challenged social attitudes, and created communities built on the new culture of African Americans.

In conclusion

The Arts have influenced and been influenced by history, they have been used to cause societal change, to portray certain messages of historical power, to challenge attitudes and to create new communities.

Without Art, the world would not only be a different place, but would it be a place at all?